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| Waymo Robotaxi |
Waymo has announced that it will roll out its commercial, fully driver-less robotaxi service in three new U.S. cities—Detroit, San Diego, and Las Vegas—sometime in 2026. The company will deploy new “Zeekr RT” vehicles—from automaker Zeekr or Geely—with its 6th-generation autonomous driving tech alongside its current fleet.
The announcement comes after the company said it would start scaling quickly so it can share its fully self-driving technology with more people. In other words, the company is working hard to bring these self-driving cars to more places sooner than the originally plans. Although, the company didn't mention when the driverless robotaxi will be available in the three cities.
Waymo—which currently operates in five cities: Los Angeles, San Francisco Bay Area, Phoenix, Atlanta, and Austin—chooses it next markets strategically in the sense that San Diego and Las Vegas are high-tourism and visitor traffic areas; and Detroit brings them into heavy auto-industry territory and challenges like winter weather.
This marks the largest geographic expansion yet for Waymo’s robotaxi business. In addition to that, the company said it'll also to launch the robotaxi business in Denver, Boston, New York City Seattle, Miami, and Washington DC.
Despite the expansion, Waymo still faces local resistance and regulatory complexity in some regions. For instance, the company is facing some resistance from local communities in both Seattle and Boston. It's also worth noting that Waymo still needs regulatory approvals in Nevada (for Las Vegas) and Michigan (for Detroit) before it can start commercial robotaxi rides in those cities.
Waymo is already licensed to operate autonomous ride-hailing services in California, but according to company spokesperson and communication associate Sandy Karp, it will also need to secure a Transportation Network Company permit in Michigan, along with testing approvals from Nevada’s Department of Motor Vehicles and its state transportation authority before beginning commercial operations there.
Here's what you need to watch next regarding this development:
- First of all, you need to watch out for when exactly are the rides be rolled out in each city and the scale of the rollout—meaning how many vehicles, and what areas will they coverage?
- Another thing you need to keep asking is that how will the new Zeekr RT vehicles perform when they're compared to the existing fleet.
- It's also wise to ask how regulators will respond and what conditions will be imposed. For instance, regulations such as safety driver requirements, geofenced zones, working permit in states like Michigan, and testing approval in states like Nevada.
- Lastly, it's also important to watch out for any competitive responses from other self-driving robotaxi companies that are already dominants of the cities.
What do you think about this development? Is it a good move, and what potential consequences might the robotaxi business face in the long run? Share your thoughts in the comments section.
